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Hull man linked to another bad gun deal

The Madison County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a report by a Tennessee man that he was scammed in a gun deal by a Hull man, who already faces two charges of fraudulently selling firearms.

Tony Earl McCannon, 48, is charged with a misdemeanor theft by deception. He is alleged to have accepted money orders for guns purchased through a website and then sent the money to Nigeria. Investigators believe McCannon was initially an unwitting participant in the scheme and was warned to stop, deputies said. However, when he continued to accept money and send it overseas after being warned, he was arrested.

Authorities said they believe McCannon was infatuated with a woman who was using him as the middleman in the scheme. After his arrest was made public, two other reports were filed with the sheriff’s office.

In the most recent case, a Tennessee man sent McCannon a money order for $850 to purchase a Ruger 77 RSM .416-caliber Rigby rifle, which was advertised on armslist.com. McCannon received the money order on May 4, but the gun was never sent to the purchaser, according to the report.

Sheriff’s Lt. Jimmy Patton said Tuesday that instead of more charges, the district attorney may opt to present all the cases to a grand jury for possible indictment on all counts.

Follow Around Here editor/writer Wayne Ford on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WayneFordABH.